These big players can hire big smart tax lawyers and the interest deductions from corporate income taxes has cost our coffers billions of dollars. 1 noted recently in Ronald Reagan's tax reform they are somewhat clipping the takeover wings because the interest deductibility is not as open ended as it was, something 1 call for in the solutions of my book.

Congress could encourage such donations by allowing the company to deduct the full value of the newspaper as a charitable contribution, creating a special exception to the current ceiling on corporate gift deductibility, which is 10% of taxable income.

(Would you like to lay odds that the tax-deductibility of philanthropic donations to arts organizations comes under renewed scrutiny in the next few years — without a corresponding boost in governmental support?)